Encyclopedia of sacred theology - pagina 169

Chap.

§ 46.

II]

of nature

come

to

FAITH

The

light.

145

peculiar character of the

spiritual sciences consists in this, that they look

of the psyche in its

therefore in is

tlie

own home and

domain

in its

own

on the

life

calling,

and

of these sciences the result of faith

The

often so entirely different in one than in the other.

same phenomenon in language will make different impressions upon a Mongolian and upon a Romanic linguist and a High Churchman will give an entirely different explanation of an event in English history from a partisan of the Old ;

Covenanters.

already for so

And much

if

this subjective differentiation counts

in Linguistics

and in History, which have common, how much more

so strong a physical substratum in

powerful must be this influence of the subjective diversity, where psychology, morals, politics, economics, jurisprudence, In these sciences almost everything depends upon the principles one starts out from, the meaning one attaches to words and the spiritual tendency by which one is governed. This subjective character of faith in these sciences is, therefore, no mistake, nor a defect, but a factor etc., are in question.

given of necessity in the nature of their object and their method. It is the essential condition (conditio sine qua nou)

by which alone these sciences can flourish. The second cause of this unlike working of faith in the spiritual domain lies in the fact, that faith here not only renders the formal service of establishing the relation be-

tween the object and the self-conscious and thinking ego., but also becomes the immediate voucher of the content. This

is

not the case in the material sciences, but

it

is

in

Our walking, our climbing of stairs, our eating and drinking, are not preceded by scientific investigation, but are effected by faith. You run downstairs without daily

life.

inquiring whether your feet will reach the steps, or whether to bear your weight. You eat bread without investigating whether it may contain poison, etc.

the

steps are

able

But when the material world investigation,

everything

is

is

the

object

of

scientific

measured, weighed, counted,

separated and examined, and faith renders the exclusively formal service of making us believe in our senses, in the

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